Victor Wembanyama speaks out against NBA players promoting betting, prediction markets: 'I will never do that'

Victor Wembanyama has landed a number of high-profile endorsements since making it in the NBA. It appears he has no plans to add betting or prediction market companies to that stable.

Speaking with reporters Thursday, the San Antonio Spurs star was asked if he would consider working with such companies. His answer was an unequivocal no, via Jared Weiss of The Athletic :

"Absolutely not. I will never do that. Honestly, I think it's very sad to see some players promote it. Everybody does whatever they want, but without me."

Wembanyama was then asked how he decides which brands to work with. His answer:

"There was a dimension of money in the past. Not anymore. Even if I said that, I've refused plenty, much, much more money than I've made for things that were not to my values. And now, I want to promote things that have a good impact, have a good influence with who I can share messages and values. "Obviously, we earn millions and millions, — this is not our biggest strength. Our biggest strength is inspiring. I want to inspire in a good way. That's the strongest thing I can do."

"There was a dimension of money in the past. Not anymore. Even if I said that, I've refused plenty, much, much more money than I've made for things that were not to my values. And now, I want to promote things that have a good impact, have a good influence with who I can share messages and values.

"Obviously, we earn millions and millions, — this is not our biggest strength. Our biggest strength is inspiring. I want to inspire in a good way. That's the strongest thing I can do."

The companies Wembanyama does work with include Nike, Louis Vuitton and Fanatics. He's also the cover athlete of Electronic Arts' "NBA 2K27" this year .

A few high-profile deals between NBA stars and gambling/predictions companies have popped up in recent years. Giannis Antetokounmpo is one of the faces of Kalshi, and also owns a stake in a company that regularly sets up markets covering NBA transactions ( sometimes featuring Antetokounmpo ).

LeBron James , who previously worked with DraftKings, recently inked a deal with Polymarket that will pay him $15 million per year , more than he will make from the Philadelphia 76ers this season. Kevin Durant's Boardroom company has a long-standing deal with Fanduel. Nikola Jokic is an ambassador for Superbet, a company in his native Serbia.

This stuff has not escaped the notice of the NBA. League commissioner Adam Silver was asked about the Kalshi-Antetokounmpo deal in February and said his office was looking into it, via Yahoo Sports' Kelly Iko :

"We currently are looking at prediction markets in the same way as sports betting companies. In the case of Giannis, it's a minuscule investment … We need a better handle on all the activity happening out there."

The NBA's collective bargaining agreement does allow players to endorse and invest in sports betting and prediction markets companies like other businesses, they just can't do anything when it comes to specifically gambling on the NBA.

The introduction of legalized sports betting hasn't been without incident for the NBA, most notably with the arrests of then-Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and Cleveland Cavaliers assistant coach Damon Jones on federal charges related to NBA bets and the lifetime ban of former Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter . And that's to say nothing of the harassment and threats its players have received from disgruntled bettors, which the NBA joined other leagues in urging action against last month .